HW Campaign: Gardens of Kadesh
|image = M07 Gardens of Kadesh.jpg |game = Homeworld |player = Mothership Fleet |enemy = Kadeshi |prim-obj = Harvest Nebula,Defend Fleet |sec-obj = Protect Resourcers,Research Fast-Tracking Turrets |previous = HW Campaign: Diamond Shoals |next = HW Campaign: Cathedral of Kadesh }} In Mission 7, in an effort to penetrate the Taiidan Empire's borders undetected, the Mothership Fleet enters the Great Nebula. However, instead of refuge, they will only find more conflict. Overview Despite the Bentusi's warnings that 'no one returns', the Mothership hyperspaces into the Great Nebula. The nebula contains a huge amount of energy, so much so that the Mothership's sensors are being scrambled. Whilst the sensors are being re-calibrated, Fleet Intelligence recommends harvesting the resource-rich nebula. While harvesting, the sensors make out a massive ship approaching. Both Motherships launch ambassadors to make first contact. The alien craft identifies the nebula as the 'Garden of Kadesh', and that it is sacred to their people. The Kushan are given a choice, join them and live in peace, or be destroyed. When the Kushan ambassador offers to leave the nebula peacefully the alien ship takes this as a refusal to join, and the alien mothership launches a mass of fighters supported by refueling pods. The Kushan fleet holds the swarming alien craft at bay while the Hyperspace module is charged. During the intense fighting, it is noted that the alien craft are targeting the resource collectors, and it is suggested that escorts be assigned to protect them. As the enemy is primarily using fighter class ships, Research offers to design a corvette class vessel specifically for taking out large numbers of such craft. Once the hyperspace module is fully charged the Kushan fleet attempts to make a quick escape, however when they try to the quantum wave effect collapses. It is quickly deduced that the alien mothership is projecting an inhibitor field, and its destruction is recommended. After more fighting, and the alien mothership is sufficiently damaged, it hyperspaces out and the Kushan can make their own escape. Mission Objectives Primary *Harvest the nebula *Defend the fleet Secondary *Protect your resourcers Research *Fast-Tracking Turrets - Leads to Multi-Gun Corvettes Strategy So long as you don't harvest, you'll have plenty of time to build ships and get your fleet in order. Nothing will happen until you start harvesting. If you still have Salvage Corvettes, dock them, and check the "remain docked" option; you'll be needing them in the next mission. Expect to fight ludicrous amounts of fighters in this mission; Defenders and Drone Frigates will be your best friend. Once you think your fleet is ready to throw fisticuffs, get to harvesting. Be sure to assign a strong escort to your resourcing operation! I had 6 assault Frigates, 1 Support Frigate plus defenders and Heavy Corvettes protecting my operations. The Kadeshi don't take kindly to strangers defiling their garden, so expect them to throw the vast majority of their firepower at your Resource Collectors. Once you incur the wrath of the Kadeshi, there's really only two things you need to do: destroy the Fuel Pods, and ignore the Kadeshi Mothership. You'll be pitted against swarms of... well, swarmers, a powerful fighter with a minuscule fuel tank. Destroy the fuel pods, and the swarmers can't refuel, leaving them easy targets. When it comes to that mothership, just know that you can't kill it, and it will ram anything you throw at, so stay away! Even if you do manage to force it to hyperspace away, it'll show back up in no time. Everything with turrets should be doing anti-fighter duty, but that doesn't mean your Ion Cannon Frigates are useless. Those fuel pods are big, slow and very explosive; perfect for target practice. Have your big guns knock them out while the rest of you fleet deals with the swarmers. After ten minutes of fighting or so, fleet command will inform you that the hyperspace is ready to go. Be sure and save your game before you hit the jump button, because that jump is gonna fail. (When you do jump, hit "Auto Dock" otherwise, your fleet will dick around for fifteen minutes and get shot to pieces before getting into position.) Sure enough, the jump fails due to some sort of hyperspace inhibitor. Now what do you suppose is causing that? That's right, it's that darn Kadeshi Mothership because it has an inhibitor field! Now is the time to throw everything you can at it, the sooner you cause it to hyperspace away, the better. Once it jumps away, the surviving fuel pods do the same leaving the swarmers helpless. Mop those bad boys up, and harvest the nebula dry. When command said it was a resource rich nebula, they weren't kidding! Depending on how much you harvested in the fight, this could take over an hour. Issue build orders for salvage corvettes (you'll need at least 12) and as many Multi-Gun Corvettes as you can. Then go eat dinner or something, your harvesters will be working for quite some time... Tips *When you're told to hyperspace jump during the battle, DO NOT DO SO! The best thing to do is to just keep on fighting, harvest the map, build your fleet, then do the failed jump. *If you are crazy enough to capture a few fuel pods, they are pretty much useless, but if you retire them, you get 300 RU's in return. *There is a bug where, if your fleet engages the Kadeshi Mothership to the point you make it flee before your first hyperspace attempt, you will not be prompted to research the multi-gun corvette. ru:HW1 Миссия 7: Сады Кадеш Garden of Kadesh 07